The only thing consistent about the English language is how inconsistent it is. This is a topic that I probably spend more time thinking about than most native English speakers because my wife is not a native English speaker and sometimes the way she words things sounds silly until I think about what she said and realize that it was more logical than the "appropriate" phrase I would have used, which would have been actual nonsense.
But that is not what has me thinking today. Today I want to use the word "oversight" to mean what it actually should mean: the sight that an overseer has. But no, in the context I want to use it, it would be too easily construed as [an] oversight, which is near enough the exact opposite of oversight. And there is no word that quite fits the blank like oversight would have, had it not have had it's meaning inverted. Have had have have had had had have had have. Aaaahhhhh!!!! Why!? This tool is broken!
Feel free to dogpile this broken p.o.s. language with your own examples. Or try to defend it, if you think it can be defended.
But that is not what has me thinking today. Today I want to use the word "oversight" to mean what it actually should mean: the sight that an overseer has. But no, in the context I want to use it, it would be too easily construed as [an] oversight, which is near enough the exact opposite of oversight. And there is no word that quite fits the blank like oversight would have, had it not have had it's meaning inverted. Have had have have had had had have had have. Aaaahhhhh!!!! Why!? This tool is broken!
Feel free to dogpile this broken p.o.s. language with your own examples. Or try to defend it, if you think it can be defended.